Michelle Monoghan is taking the cold plunge – in her swimsuit. In a new social media post the actress slips into a two-piece and takes an ice bath while vacationing in Thailand. “I did it! I did it! 🤙 I know I’m late to that #icebath party but now this girl needs one!! I managed three minutes today and I’m already obsessed. 🤩 So tell me, who’s got one at home and what brand is the best!?! This girl wants to keep the freeze going! 🧊,” she captioned the post. How does she approach diet, fitness, and self-care? Here is everything you need to know about her lifestyle habits.
Michelle fuels up with healthy foods. “I’ve never been on a diet,” she added. “I don’t think they make sense. Ultimately, it’s eating sensibly…but if I’m at a restaurant, all bets are off!” she said. “Breakfast is my fuel for the day. It might be a bowl of goat’s-milk yogurt with granola, berries, and raisins, and maybe shaved almonds and flaxseed thrown in, and a banana smoothie,” she dished to Women’s Health. Michelle eats salad “three or four times a week” for lunch. She also likes turkey sandwiches with avocado and a slice of Swiss cheese, and homemade soup, “broccoli, cauliflower, butternut squash—make a big batch and you have it for days.” Dinner might be trout or salmon, paired with steamed or roasted veggies or brown rice. “Good ol’ Iowa ribeye” is something she will indulge in on occasion.
Michelle does strength training workouts, using a trainer three days a week. During her hour-long sessions she does cable work, squats, lunges, and step-ups. “It’s a push to make myself go—it’s hard!” she says. “But whenever I get off my lazy butt, I’m happy I did,” she says. According to the Mayo Clinic, strength and weight training help reduce body fat, preserve and increase lean muscle mass, and burn calories more efficiently. Strength training may also help you:
- Develop strong bones
- Manage your weight
- Enhance your quality of life
- Manage chronic conditions
- Sharpen your thinking skills
“Pilates is my everyday self-care,” Michelle revealed in a recent post. Pilates is “really challenging,” she added to Shape. “I find that it’s a good balance for my running, which makes my muscles tight. Pilates loosens me up.” Why is pilates a good workout? According to the Mayo Clinic there are lots of benefits to the workout, as it “strengthens the body’s inner core while increasing its flexibility resulting in improved overall health.” It can also promote longer, leaner muscles, injury prevention, relief from stress and back pain, enhanced athletic performance, and heightened mind-body awareness.
Michelle drinks her nutrients. “I try to drink green juice three times a week— kale, celery, spinach. Sometimes that replaces my coffee,” she told Women’s Health. “I also bought a Vitamix blender. It purees everything.”
“Going on a hike with a friend or my husband works for me because it doesn’t feel like exercise,” Michelle told Women’s Health. “You’re catching up or having a gossip session, and time goes by quickly. This weekend my husband and I played beach volleyball with friends and worked up the greatest sweat,” she told Women’s Health. “Years ago, when I started working out, it was about getting my body in shape. But now the mental benefits outweigh the physical ones. That’s why I love going for a hike in the morning. There’s something about climbing a mountain that’s symbolic-you set your intention and what you want to focus on. I think about what I have to do today or what I have to accomplish this week. It allows me that space where there’s no one else around,” she added to Shape.
Michelle recently got into cold plunges. There is limited research supporting the benefits of cold plunges, which may include easing sore muscles, bringing body temperature down, increased focus, improved sleep, and decreased inflammation, per the Cleveland Clinic. However, a 2021 study found that cold water immersion therapy promotes basic post-sport recovery.